Solar: 0 / Electronics: 1

I just got the 12W Sunlinq flexible solar panel and put it through its first test. It failed.

I tried to directly run a CD player, using the cigarette lighter adapter (CLA) from the solar panel, and it only briefly powered up and then shut down. The CD player runs on 6W, 4.5V, 600 mA. The maximum output of the panels is 800 mA, 12W, 12V. If the panel were operating at its max efficiency, I'd expect it to be capable of running the CD player handily. This begs the question of what I can reasonably expect this product to accomplish.

Under what conditions can the panels deliver 800 mA of power? Is this high noon at the equator in the summertime with the panels perfectly aligned to the sun's rays? Before I start buying accessories to run off the panel, I need to know what realistic energy requirements I should look for. I've been looking into a fan that can be run off the panels because I think it would be fun to be reading in the park on a hot summer day with a solar driven fan to keep me cool. The one marine fan that I'm looking at draws 590 mA. If the panel couldn't drive the CD player, I'm not ready to jump on a fan drawing nearly the same current. The same company makes some even more efficient fans, with an energy draw as low as 190 mA, but the price jumps up into the nearly $100 range and I'm not that curious right now to see if something does or does not work. I'll try to look into some boating stores in the area to see if I can try out the products before paying for them.

I just rummaged through my house to see what other portable devices I might still have, that can run off a cigarette lighter adapter and only found a couple old cassette tape players. I plugged them in to see if they still worked and both are dead. The only other thing I have is a battery charger and I've emailed the company to see if there would be any issues with using the charger directly off the panel. The charger should work. That will at least allow me to energize NIMH rechargeable batteries off solar power. I do have a Garmin GPS, from work, and I'll contact Garmin to see if there would be any issues with charging it from the solar panel. I'm willing to experiment with some old $30 electronics, but am reluctant to do the same with a $500 pocket PC GPS.

I looked through the aisles of an electronics entertainment store to see what they might have that would have the right specifications to work from the panels. Not too surprisingly, the boxes didn't have power specifications, so I'm stuck having to browse websites and still not usually finding that information. I don't want to spend too much time looking till I have a better idea of what I can expect for real world power output from the solar panel.

The other thing that I'm doing this weekend is charging the Xantrex Powerpack I bought. My guess is that it will take anywhere from 2-4 weeks of good sunlight to get a full charge. The initial charge will be from a standard outlet. Right out of the box, there is a tag on the Powerpack stating that it should be fully charged before it is used for anything else. If the Powerpack were empty, it could take 40 hours to fully charge it. It was 3/4s full when I got it, so it should not take that long. With a snowstorm starting to wind down outside, there's not much I can do with the panels. I tried them quickly in the overcast sun and didn't see any power being delivered that even turned on the light with the cigarette lighter adaptors.

I'm still in a learning mode and still hopeful that I'll be able to find loads of applications for the portable solar panel. Since I'm learning as I go, this diary will hopefully provide useful information to anybody else thinking of taking the solar plunge.